Chair.



C. H. HILL.

CHAIR. APPLICATION HLED.0CT.19. 1914- v Patented Oct. 3,1916.

fittovne '[aZ Fm STATES PATENT O I CALVIN H. I-IILL, OF CHICAGO, ILLINOIS, ASSIGNOR TO I-IEYWOOD BROTHERS AND WAKEFIELD COMPANY, OF GARDNER, MASSACHUSETTS, A CORPORATION OF NEW JERSEY.

CHAIR.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, CALVIN H. HILL, a citizen of the United States, residing at Chicago, in the county of Cook and State of Illinois, have invented a new and useful Improvement in Chairs, of which-the following, taken in connection with the accompanying drawings, is a specification.

The present invention relates particularly to that class of chairs adapted for use in theaters, assembly halls, and the like, where it is desirable and necessaryv that the seats of the chairs may fold upwardly to permit persons to pass freely between the rows, and also to permit easy cleaning of the floor around said chairs.

It is desirable to have the seats of such chairs readily removable, to permit renovating of the same when desired; but it is a requisite characteristic of this act of removing, that the same may be accomplished only by the performance of certain known conditions; otherwise, the chairs would be liable to dismantling by thoughtless and michievous persons, to the great inconvenience of the proprietorsandpatrons of the theater, or hall.

The present invention aims to provide a chair which fulfils the above requirements and, at the same time, which is easily and cheaply manufactured. The same is illustrated in the accompanying drawings, in which- I Figure 1 is a front view-of a chair embodying my invention. Fig. 2 is a sectional view on line 22, Fig. l, the position of the seat being shown in dotted lines. Fig. 3 is an enlarged side view of the seat supporting means, a portion of the same being shown in section. Fig. 4 is a view similar -to Fig. 3, showing the other side of the seat supporting means. Fig. 5 is a perspective view of a portion of the seat. Fig. 6 is a sectional view on line 6-6, Fig. 3.

Similar reference characters refer to similar parts in the different figures.

The chair comprises side frames 1, 1, preferably of slightly flexible sheet metal construction, having arm pieces 2, 2, and supporting, in any. well known manner, a back 3. On the inner face of each of the side frames 1, substantially at the level of. the axis about which the chair seat 4 is pivoted, are secured the flanged edges of a metallic plate 5, the body portion of said plate be- Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented'Octfi, 1916.

Application filed October 19, 1914. Serial No. 867,517.

' member lies flat against the side edge of the seat, being provided with a flange 7 secured to the bottom of the seat for additional strength. The upper edge of each member 6 1s bent outwardly from the seat, at right angles, to form a narrow flange 8, which has dependmg therefrom an ear 9, lying parallel to the body portion of the member and spaced a short distance therefrom. A pin 10, carried between said body portion 6 and sald ear 9, projects outwardly from the latter, the said axially alined pins constituting trunnions for the pivotal support of the seat by said plates 5, as hereinafter set forth.

The body portion of each plate 5 has formed therein an elongated slot 11, the lower end of which is suitably rounded to constitute a bearing for'the pin 10. The slots 11 are wider'at the top than at the bottom, to permit free movement of the pins therein, in the act of inserting or removing the seat. To the inner face of each plate 5 is attached a small plate 12, having its edgesturned at right angles and secured to plate 5 so asto maintain its body portion parallel to and spaced from said plate 5. A notch 13, conforming in shape to the portion of the slot 11 covered by said plate 12, 1s formed in each plate 12, to provide an additional bearing for the corresponding pin 10. I

A second plate 14, similar to the plate 12, is secured to the inner face of plate 5 above and to the rear of the plate 12. The plate 14 has its upper and rear edges turned toward and secured to the plate 5, the space between the two plates being open at the front and at the bottom. Secured within sald space by a screw 15, or the like, is a block 16 of felt or other yielding material, extending slightly beyond the front andlower edges of the plate 14 and serving as a stop for the flange 8, to strike against in either of the extreme positions of the seat.

On its outer face, in the space provided. between its body portion and the side frames 1, each plate 5 carries a latch 17 pivoted at 1 6 18, the forward end of said latch having its edge notched, as at 19, so that when the latch is swung by drawing its other end rearwardly, said notch locks the corresponding pin 10 at the bottom of its slot 11. A projection 20, preferably formed by punching the plate 5 outwardly, serves to hold the latch 17 in position to lock the pin as above described; in order to release the pin, the latch must be sprung outwardly and carried over said projection 20, in its movement to swing the notch 19 rearwardly.

With the seat in position as shown in Figs. 1, 2, 3, 4: and 6, the latches 17 are retained in positions shown by the projections 20, the notches 19 cooperating with the bottoms of the slots 11 and 13 to form bearings in which the pins 10 may turn freely, permitting the chair seat to be swung into and out of folded position, as desired. With the parts in the positions above described, no lateral play of the seat, by movement in its own plane, is possible, nor is the accidental displacement of the seat liable to occur, since the latches 17 firmly maintain the pins 10 in place, preventing the upward bodily movement of the seat.

In order to remove the seat from the chair frames, the first step required is to swing the latches 17 into inoperative position, in the manner previously referred to, by springing them clear of the projections 20. Thereafter the seat is swung into folded position, in order to free its rear portion of the plates 1 1, and in such vertical position the seat is lifted upwardly in its own plane, until the pins 10 are brought up against the upper ends of the slots 11 in the plates 5. In this position the pins are free of the slots or notches 13, and also the ears 9 are disposed above and out of engagement with the plates 12. By springing the side frames 1, 1 slightly apart, the pins 10 are released from the slots 11 and the seat can then be lifted clear of the frames. The replacement of the seat is effected by the insertion of the pins 10 within the slots 11 after the frames 1, 1 have been sprung apart, the seat being held in a substantially vertical position. The said pins seek the bottom of the slots 11 and 13 by gravity; the swinging of the latches 17 into locking position completes the re-assembly of the chair.

I claim, v

1. A chair including a pair of side frames, vertically disposed slotted members carried by said side frames, a seat having horizontal pivots to pass through said slots, and vertical ears carried by the sides of said seat and interlocking with said slotted members when said seat is pivotally supported in said slots, and means for locking said pivots within said slots.

2. A chair including a pair of side frames, a plate carried by each side frame having a vertical slot therein, a second plate spaced from said first mentioned plate and having a notch in alinement with said slot, a seat having pivots disposed within said slots and notches, and ears carried by the side of said seat and disposed between said spaced plates, and means for locking said pivots within said slots.

Dated this 5th day of Oct, 1914.

CALVIN H. HILL. Witnesses:

FRAN N. MOKEE, ELMER E. SPEED.

Copies ofthis patent may be obtained for five cents each, by addressingthe Commissioner of Patents. Washington, D. O. 

